Stephen Cantwell Product Description and Definition

Earbud Headphones: A Closer Look Introduction

In 2001, apple released its new music listening device that could hold several CDs worth of music files. The introduction of the iPod helped to change how people listened to music, mainly in making it more private. This of course led to the use of personal headphones that were more fashionable and easy to travel with. So the question is what are these personal headphones called? How do they work? And how can I choose the best working headphones?

What are Earbuds?

Earbuds or earphones are a pair of small loudspeakers that are fitted into a users outer ears and are intended be used with electrical devices to play sounds for the user. They are small and do not require any headband to secure them and they are packaged with most portable sound systems (i.e. iPod or mp3 player). An example of the standard Apple earbuds is shown in figure 1.

Figure 1. Apple standard iPod earbuds

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Whats inside a pair of Earbuds?

Basic earbuds consist of three visible parts: The audio jack, the cords, and the headphone housing. All three of these parts are typically connected. The audio jack is basic and is a metal part which is used to conduct electricity. The cords are rubber covered wires that are used to transmit the electrical signal conducted from the jack to each headphone. The wires are twisted all together at the jack end and split roughly two thirds of the length up the cords into two separate headphones. There two cords that lead to each headphone for a total of 4 wires. There are two wires per headphone so that each one can become a complete circuit, which is necessary for any electrical device to function. The headphone housing contains several important pieces (shown in figure 2). The front and back cases hold everything together. The seal is the rubber clip that holds the front and back cases together. The Magnet is at the back of the speaker and is the heaviest part of the earbud. The coil is used as an electromagnet when electricity flows through it. The Transparent plastic cone is what makes sound when it is moved. All of these parts work together to both transmit the signals and create sounds.

Figure 2. The inner mechanisms of an earbud

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How does it work?

Loudspeakers and headphones actually work exactly the same way. The only difference, of course, is that all of the parts in the earbuds are much smaller than what is used for say a concert speaker and therefore does not generate as much sound. The way both these speakers work is based on magnetism. As was stated in the previous section, the earbuds have both a magnet and a coil that turns into an electromagnet. As pulses of electricity pass through the coil, the direction of the magnetic field rapidly changes. And, since the electromagnet is in a cone shape and is not technically fixed into place, the cone vibrates based on these magnetic field changes and produces sound. A diagram of this process is shown in figure 3. The frequency of these vibrations control both the pitch of the noise made and the amplitude determines the volume. This is why when you look at larger speakers that are playing very loud sound you can actually see the speaker vibrate. This is also why at say a rock concert if you are close enough to the speakers you can often feel the vibrations from the speakers. So when you decide you want to play music this is what occurs: 1. You plug the audio jack thats attached to your headphones into your iPod or MP3 Player and a series electrical signal is sent from the device as soon as you press play. 2. That electrical signal travels through each set of wires and runs through the electromagnet; vibrating the small cone and creating sounds. 3. The electrical signal is modified based on what series of sounds creates the chosen music you want to play and music occurs as a result.

Figure 3. Inner workings of a speaker (1. Cone, 2. Electromagnet, 3. Magnet)

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Fun Fact
Microphones work exactly the same as speakers, except in reverse. All that you have to do is to modify the speaker to turn the vibrations into electric signals as opposed to the other way around. In fact, any pair of headphones can be used as microphones with the right amount of tinkering.

How can you choose the best working earbuds?

There are two main types of earbuds; a sealed design or an open design. A sealed design, as it is stated, has a completely enclosed back case. This takes away from the sound quality because the cone vibrations due to the electromagnet are more constricted. On the other hand the sealed design directs all of the sound towards the users ear and provides the minimum amount of disturbance to their surroundings. The open design has several holes in the back casing. This allows for more movement of the tiny speakers and therefore a higher quality sound. But it also allows for more noise to be heard by others as well as more noise pollution to disrupt the users listening. There are a variety of other differences between brands of headphones but they make no real changes to the devices themselves. Typically, the more expensive the pair of headphones the higher quality the materials are. So the more you are willing to spend, the better quality of sound you will have.

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